Advocaat Rues Youthful Zenit's Madrid Defeat; Says Arshavin Should Go

Dick Advocaat spoke with grim resignation to reporters after his side fell to a 3-0 loss to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

Without some of their most recognisable stars he was left explaining why the lineup had an oddly youthful look to it - particularly without star forward Andrei Arshavin.

He told UEFA.com, "We need to think about who will be in the new team, in the future.

"We wanted to free those who want to leave, and work with those who want to be here."

Clearly he was hinting at Andrei Arshavin, who is said to be desperate to leave St. Petersburg to try his luck further west.

"As for Andrei Arshavin, he wasn't ready for this match. He had a fever. But I did want him to play.

"For him to play here would be a chance for him to demonstrate his talents," said the coach.

"That's the price we pay for having good players. It's normal that if we progress and move forward and play in Europe they want to improve.

"Having won the Super Cup against Manchester (United) has raised hopes in this team, yet we haven't managed to beat Real Madrid."